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(No Model.)

J. BOHMANN. ARM REST TOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

No. 401,814. Patented Apr. 23, 1889.

UNITED STATES PATENT (lemon.

JOSEPH BOIIMANN, OF CHICAGO, lIiIiIXOIS.

ARM-REST FOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 401,814, dated April23, 1889.

Application filed March 15, 1888. Serial No. 267,204=. (N0 model.)

To all 107mm it may concern:

Beit known that I, JOSEPH BOHMANN, ol' the city of Chicago, in thecounty of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Arm-Rests for Musical Instruments, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention is intended to be applied to instruments which, while heldagainst the body of the performer, are played by plucking or picking thestrings, such as the mandolin, guitar, and banjo. Its object is toincrease the firmness and ease of the hold on the instrument and toassist in maintaining the proper position of the hand, thereby i11-creasing the performers facility and accuracy in playing.

My invention consists in the parts and combinations hereinafterdescribed and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of amandolin having my arm-rest attached. Fig. 2 is a side view of the same.Fig. is a section of the tailpiece and lower part of the rest,showin gmore clearly the mode oi? attachment and adjustment of the arm-rest.Figs. 4 and 5 show a different mode of attaching the rest.

The arm-rest A, as will be seen by the drawings, is somewhattrough-shaped or hollowed in the direction of its length, the purpose ofthis curvaturebeing to fit it to the arm. For the sake of lightness, andin order to restrain the armas little as possible, the sides are cutaway at a a, leaving only the extremities of the trough Z) b b b of fullwidth. To make the rest more comfortable to the arm, all the edges ofthe upper surface are rounded back, as shown in the drawings. At thelower end of the rest is an extension, 13, (see Fig. 3,) which isfastened by a pivot, C, to the tailpiece E. A screw, D, is situatedabove the pivot C, and maybe turned in or out, thereby altering theelevation of the arnrrest at its upper end. The screw D would serve thesame purpose if it passed through the armrest and abutted against thetailpiece i l; but I prei'erthe arrangement shown, for the reason thatthe screw is more out of the way. This adjustment is desirable, becausethe wrist of the player can be elevated the proper distance to suit hishand, be it long or short.

The pivot (i is preferably made removable, so that the arm-rest may bedetached when the instrument is not in use.

The mode of using the arm-rest is obvious. The forearm is placed in therest, the wristjoint projecting sufliciently to give it free play. Thecurvature of the rest prevents the instrument from slipping out ofplace, and thereby leaves the left hand of the player much more atliberty for making rapid shifts, and the right arm is supported andguided by the rest.

Figs. 4 and 5 show an extensioinB, adapted to fit into a dovetailedgroove, 0, in the tailpiece E. The arm-rest may be adjusted to someextent by sliding in the groove C, but not within so wide a range as inthe first instance. Other modes of fastening the armrest may be devisedwithout departing from my invention, which consists, mainly, of anarm-rest hollowed or curved to lit the forearm, and attached in suchrelation to the instrument as to assist in maintaining the properrelative position of the arm and hand thereto.

When the rest is al'iixed to an instrument having no tail-piece attachedthereto, or when the tail-piece is not properly situated, a separateplate, E, or an equivalent therefor, must of course be provided.

The rest may be made of any length found most suitable to the particularcase.

I claiml. The combination, with a musical instrument of the classdescribed, of an arm-rest hollowed in the direct-ion of its length toconform to the players arm, and. standing at an angle to the top of theinstrumentcorresponding to the natural angle of the arm, shown anddescribed.

2. The combination, with a musical instrument of the class described, ofthe arnrrest A, pivotally connected thereto, and an adj ustingscrew, 1),substantially as described.

The combination, with a musical instrument of the class described, of anarm-rest attached to the side thereof and extending over its top at anangle thereto corresponding to the natural angle of the player's arm,and adjustable to and from the instrument, substantially as and for thepurpose described.

4-,. An arm-rest adapted for application. to a musical instrument of theclass described for supporting the hand employed in picking the strings,said rest being of a height to elevate and position the hand of theplayer over the sound-board and to determine the extent to which hisfingers can drop toward the strings,

substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. An adjustable arm-rest adapted for a'p' plication to amusicalinstrunientof the class described in position to support the handemr ployed in picking the strings, substantially as and for the purposeset fort-hr f 6. The combination, with a musical instrument of the classdescribed, of an arm-rest adapted and arranged to support and positionthe hand of the player over the sound-board and to determine the extentto which his fingers can drop toward the strings, substantially asandfor the purpose set forth. f I JOSEPH BOHMANN.

Witnesses:

P. MAsoN, J. I. VEEDER.

